


those heavy days in june when love became an act of defiance

by infinitefire



Category: The Worst Witch (TV 2017)
Genre: Defenestration Threats, Established Relationship, F/F, Fluff, Homophobia, Pride, and there are a couple Soft Gay Moments because otherwise what's the point?, but mildred and the girls are focused on hicsqueak, mostly focused on mildred and the girls, season 3 never happened
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-01
Updated: 2019-08-01
Packaged: 2020-07-28 16:50:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20067340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/infinitefire/pseuds/infinitefire
Summary: Pippa pays her girlfriend a surprise visit, Mildred is in the wrong place at the wrong time, Felicity knows everything, Ethel is Ethel, and Hecate didn't ask for any of this.





	those heavy days in june when love became an act of defiance

**Author's Note:**

> written for the hicsqueakfest!! prompt was "Mildred yelling, 'Ethel, if you don't stop being a homophobe, DuRIng PRide mONth, then I will yeet you out the window!!!'"
> 
> title from "june" by florence + the machine

“Happy Pride, Hiccup.”

Hecate’s already sitting in bed when she hears the voice at her window. It startles her into fumbling with the pages of her book until the paperback falls closed and she sets it aside, abandoning thoughts of remembering her place, as she stands up and puts on her robe with a flourish of her wrist.

“Pippa,” she exhales, incredulous. “Why are you …”

“Is it really so terrible that I wanted to see my girlfriend?”

“It’s midnight,” Hecate points out, opening the window for Pippa to come in. The drafts from outside blow open her door, just a crack.

“It’s the witching hour,” counters Pippa, banishing her broom and hat and kissing Hecate on the cheek.

“Flying at this time of night is dangerous.”

Pippa lets her hands linger on Hecate’s arms. “Yes, but I wanted to see you.”

Hecate’s face softens.

“You know I have to be at that event tomorrow, and it’s so soon after the end of term, and I just couldn’t wait—we haven’t been able to spend time together properly in nearly a month, what with both of us having exams to deal with, and—”

Hecate kisses her quiet. “It’s alright, darling,” she mutters against Pippa’s lips. “I’ve missed you too this past month.”

“I’m sorry for not calling before. And for springing this on you before Cackle’s has ended term—”

Hecate kisses her again, harder this time.

“You know, it’s really infuriating when you do that,” says Pippa when they break away, a little breathless. “I can never finish my train of thought.”

“Perhaps that’s the point.” A pause. “Are you complaining?”

“No. Do it again.”

Hecate obliges, forgetting about the open window and door.

* * *

Mildred Hubble can’t sleep.

She knows wandering the halls at this time of night is a terrible idea, but she’s restless, and her room is too small for the amount of wandering she needs to calm her restless thoughts.

_ I won’t go near any of the teachers’ rooms,  _ she thinks as she quietly slips out the door, and really, she intends to repeat it to herself as long as she’s out and about in the castle, but as her body wanders, so does her mind, and—

_ Ah, crap, that’s HB’s room _ .

Mildred is preparing to slowly tiptoe away when she notices that the door is open a crack. Half of her is ready to drop all thoughts of tiptoeing and just run for it at this new development, but she ignores that half and does the sensible thing for once, turns around and begins quietly walking away.

She hears a familiar voice, and against her (admittedly very few) better instincts, she turns around and tries to peer through the crack in the door. She’s met with the sight of Miss Hardbroom and Miss Pentangle thoroughly making out. She thinks she hears Miss Pentangle whisper, “I love you.”

Mildred realizes that this door is not supposed to be open and she should really, really,  _ really  _ leave now. She tries to exit gracefully and quietly, but since that never goes well for Mildred, she trips over her untied shoelace (her feet were getting cold, even in her socks) and falls over.

Her knees get a bit scratched, but she catches herself before she can get hurt too badly. The noise, however, alerts Miss Hardbroom and Miss Pentangle to her presence, and suddenly there are two sets of footsteps, and Mildred is forced to confront the terrifying reality that she will have to face her teacher after witnessing her making out with her girlfriend. She doesn’t know how to deal with this, so she goes with her instinct: gets up, straightens out her pajamas, greets Miss Hardbroom and Miss Pentangle with a huge grin and exclaims, “You two are dating! That’s the bats!”

Miss Hardbroom halts, puzzled. “You’re not disgusted?”

“Well, you two are obviously in love.”

Miss Hardbroom looks somewhat panicked. “How is that obvious?”

“Miss Pentangle said that—”

It’s Miss Pentangle’s turn to panic at that. “Is it the way I went on at the Spelling Bee about how Hecate broke my heart?” she asks nervously. 

Hecate turns to face Pippa, shocked. “You— _ what _ ?”

“Um, I was going to say that Miss Pentangle said that she loves you, Miss Hardbroom. Just now. Before I interrupted. Speaking of which, I should probably just—” Mildred shuffles and glances over her shoulder, preparing to leave this now very awkward conversation.

“Erm, yes. Mildred,” Miss Pentangle puts in, “you wouldn’t mind keeping this all to yourself, would you? It’s quite private.”

Mildred grins. “Of course, Miss Pentangle. Miss Hardbroom.”

She skips off before either of them can rope her into more uncomfortable talk about her teachers’ love lives. She’s happy for them, really, but she can’t see how it’s as big of a deal as they’re making it out to be.

“Oh, and Mildred?” calls Miss Hardbroom.

Mildred braces herself and turns around.

“Tie your shoelaces.”

* * *

Of course, as Mildred’s luck would have it, the rumors about Miss Hardbroom and Miss Pentangle are entirely out of her control.

She’s woken up promptly at six A.M. when her maglet screen lights up with a new post on Felicity’s blog. Mildred skims through the article in bewilderment, confused but not entirely surprised about how Felicity found out, and relieved that at least it doesn’t say anything homophobic. She doesn’t think she could deal with that, not now, when exams are almost over and it’s the beginning of pride month and Miss Drill convinced Mildred’s mum that Mildred could come with them to the parade—yes, it’s a little weird having her mum dating one of her teachers, and it’s annoying that her mum absolutely refuses to ever talk Miss Drill into giving her less detention, but Miss Drill is surprisingly more of a softie on some things, and Mildred will take that.

One thing she does have to deal with, though, is facing Miss Hardbroom now that these rumors have come up, and whose fault could it be but Mildred Hubble’s? She nearly skips breakfast out of mortification, but then she remembers it’s exam week, and really, better not. 

She doesn’t even make it to the dining hall before she encounters bigger problems than Miss Hardbroom. Namely, Ethel Hallow telling Felicity that “all this talk of Miss Hardbroom and Miss Pentangle is absolutely ludicrous. Miss Hardbroom would never do something so perverse as have sexual relations with another woman.”

Felicity, looking very uncomfortable, opens her mouth to say something. Mildred stomps down the stairs, not having any of this.

“Ethel, if you don’t stop being a homophobe,  _ during pride month _ , then I will yeet you out the window!”

“Like you even could,” Ethel retorts.

“Oh, I think I could manage. After all, I did yeet myself in through the window on Selection Day.”

“Barely. You couldn’t yeet anyone through a window without doing some serious damage.”

“Bold of you to assume that’s not the point!”

Ethel’s eyes widen in alarm. She turns around with a “hmph,” ponytail swishing behind her, and walks away, presumably to fetch Miss Hardbroom.

Felicity turns to Mildred. “Thanks,” she says. “You’re probably in trouble, but thanks. I didn’t really wanna deal with that.”

Before Mildred has a chance to respond, Miss Hardbroom, followed by a smirking Ethel, makes her grand entrance. “ _ Mildred Hubble!  _ What—”

Mildred doesn’t wait for Miss Hardbroom to finish before pointing an accusatory finger at Ethel. “She was being a homophobe!  _ During pride month _ !”

“As if that is an excuse for—” Miss Hardbroom starts instinctively, then pauses, realizing that she does not in fact know what Mildred did this time.

“She threatened to ‘yeet me out the window’ when I pointed out that the idea of intimate relations between you and Miss Pentangle is disgusting,” Ethel supplies.

“I was defending your honor!” Mildred cries in defense before Miss Hardbroom has a chance to react.

Miss Hardbroom’s face softens in confusion, then hardens again when she realizes Mildred’s implication. “You said you would keep this private!” she hisses.

“I didn’t say anything!”

“Lies!”

“It’s true! It’s not my fault Felicity knows everything!”

“I find that difficult to believe, Mildred Hubble!”

“Uh, Miss Hardbroom?” Felicity pipes up.

“ _ What _ ?”

“Mildred’s telling the truth. She didn’t say anything.”

Miss Hardbroom doesn’t respond, simply stares, mouth pressed into a thin line in anger.

“I saw Miss Pentangle fly in last night,” Felicity continues. “Straight—” she pauses, as if debating whether or not to crack a joke about her word choice. (She decides against it.) “Straight through your window.”

Miss Hardbroom is positively  _ fuming _ .

“I’m sorry,” says Felicity quickly, “I jumped to my own conclusions. But, not exactly subtle?”

If HB was any angrier, Mildred thinks, there would be steam coming out of her ears. 

“Miss Cackle’s office,” growls Miss Hardbroom. “ _ Now _ .”

Felicity is transferred away with a snap of her fingers. She looks as if she wants to say something to the rest of them, but all she does is glare before transferring away after Felicity.

* * *

Hecate paces relentlessly. Her duties are done for the day, and Ethel, Felicity, and Mildred have all been thoroughly scolded, but the sheer ridiculousness of it all overwhelms her. “I cannot believe that girl sometimes. ‘I was defending your honor!’  _ Honestly _ .” Her hair, released from its bun, fans out behind her as she turns around, the movement exaggerated by her shaking her head.

“It seems my arrival has become rather more of an event than I intended,” says Pippa gently. “I’m sorry for bringing this on you. If you would like me to leave—”

“No.” Hecate halts her pacing, turns to approach Pippa where she sits in Hecate’s armchair. “Stay. I’m ... glad you’re here.” She takes both of Pippa’s hands in her own, presses her lips to Pippa’s knuckles, smiles a little. 

Pippa smiles back fully, and sunshine radiates through Hecate’s heart.

All troubles regarding Ethel Hallow, Felicity Foxglove, and Mildred Hubble suddenly fading away, Hecate uses her grip on Pippa’s hands to pull her up, spins her around once, twice—Pippa laughs, and the sound is full of joy and warmth—and kisses her, smiling into her lips.

“Happy Pride, Pipsqueak.”

**Author's Note:**

> thanks for reading! leave a comment and you will have my eternal love and gratitude :)
> 
> (also talk to me on tumblr @firesofthestars)


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